The IV Corps in the India Pakistan War 1971

"Under the command of Lieutenant General Sagat Singh

Sagat Singh

Sagat Singh was a General in the Indian army notable for his participation in liberation of Goa and later in Bangladesh. He held man prestigious command and staff appointments throughout his military career....

 the IV Corps, with all eight East Bengal Regiment battalions, had already made some gains before the war. An enclave south of Akaura served as a springboard for 57 Division, which advanced along the rail line to Ashuganj. In seesaw fighting that saw several successful Pakistani counterattacks, 27 Brigade of the Pakistani 14th Infantry Division fell back across the Meghna River

Meghna River

The Meghna River is an important river in Bangladesh, one of the three that forms the Ganges Delta, the largest on earth fanning out to the Bay of Bengal. Being a part of the Surma-Meghna River System, Meghna is formed inside Bangladesh by the joining of different rivers originaing from the hilly...

 and destroyed part of the rail bridge, blocking immediate passage of the river. General Singh, however, saw Dacca as “the final answer” and decided “to go beyond my assigned task.”62 In an impressive display of improvisation, IV Corps began crossing the broad Meghna on 9 December in a hastily assembled helicopter lift operation supplemented by every variety of local water craft. Pakistan’s 14 Division was no longer a hindrance as its 27 Brigade had retired to Bhairab Bazar and its other two brigades (202 and 313) were isolated at Sylhet

Sylhet

Sylhet , is a major city in north-eastern Bangladesh. It is the main city of Sylhet Division and Sylhet District, and was granted metropolitan city status in March 2009. Sylhet is located on the banks of the Surma Valley and is surrounded by the Jaintia, Khasi and Tripura hills...

."

"Further south, the Indian 23rd Infantry Division

23rd Infantry Division (India)

The Indian 23rd Infantry Division was an infantry division of the Indian Army during World War II. It fought in the Burma Campaign.-History:The division was raised on 1 January 1942, at Jhansi in Central India. Its badge was a red fighting cock on a yellow circle...

 also reached the Meghna on 9 December, seizing both Daudkandi and Chandpur against light resistance. The isolated Pakistani force at Laksham capitulated the same day, leaving only the garrison of Mayanmati to offer organized resistance east of the Meghna. The Pakistani 39 Division had disintegrated.65 A sense of imminent victory drove the Indians, and, as 57th Mountain Division painfully built up its strength west of the river, 23 Division (shedding 83 Brigade and “Kilo Force” to push toward Chittagong), prepared to make its own improvised crossing. In another colorful, tenuous helicopter and boat operation, 301 Brigade landed at Baidya Bazar on 14 December and closed on the Lakhya the following day."

"India’s 57 Division was also advancing: 311 Brigade and “Sierra Force” were threatening Demra and 73 Brigade had reached the Balu east of Tungi. General Sagat Singh’s decision to “go beyond his assigned task” had paid off. The Indians were also approaching Dacca from the northwest, hindered more by severe logistics constraints than by the near-nonexistent Pakistani opposition. Indeed, Pakistani 93 Brigade, over the protest of its commander, had been withdrawn toward Dacca in a desperate attempt to shield the unprotected capital against the Indian troops advancing rapidly from the east and northeast. The Indian airborne drop of 2 Para at Tangail on 11 December accentuated the menace to Dacca. Although 2 Para’s appearance made only a marginal contribution to the tactical battle, it helped to unnerve Niazi and others in Eastern Command headquarters, already anxious because of the lack of regular combat troops in the capital.68 Predations of the local Mukti Bahini under Qadir “Tiger” Siddiqi compounded Pakistan’s woes, disrupting movements and depleting morale. The Indian paratroopers joined hands with 95 Brigade on 12 December and, with 167 Brigade hastening up from Jamalpur, soon reached and crossed the Turag."

"By 15 December, the Pakistani situation around Dacca was hopeless: the lone brigade of 36
Division was broken, the newly arrived 314 Brigade was little more than a paper organization, 14 Division was sitting demoralized and useless at Bhairab Bazar, and 39 Division had ceased to exist. On the morning of 16 December, Major General Mohammed Jamshed Khan drove out of Dacca to arrange the cease-fire."

Composition

In 1961, IV Corps, which had been disbanded within the British Indian Army

British Indian Army

The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...

 after the Second World War, was reestablished.
It currently consists of:

• 2nd Mountain Division headquartered at Dinjan
  Dinjan
  Dinjan is a small township in Dibrugarh district of Assam, India.It is located in the tea growing area of Assam. The closest town to it is Tinsukhia...
  
  
• 5th Mountain Division headquartered at Bomdila
  Bomdila
  Bomdila is the headquarters of West Kameng district in the state of Arunachal Pradesh in India.-Geography:Bomdila is located at . It has an average elevation of 2217 metres .-Demographics:...
  
  . The division was converted to a mountain division in 1963. It is posted to the west of 2 Mountain Division in Arunachal Pradesh
  Arunachal Pradesh
  Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India, located in the far northeast. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south, and shares international borders with Burma in the east, Bhutan in the west, and the People's Republic of China in the north. The majority of the territory is claimed by...
  
  .
• 21st Mountain Division
  21st Infantry Division (India)
  The 21st Indian Infantry Division was a division of the Indian Army during World War II. It was formed in April 1944. in Assam. It never saw any combat and its only sub unit was the 268th Indian Infantry Brigade...
  
   headquartered at Rangia
  Rangia
  Rangia is a city and a municipal board in Kamrup district in the Indian state of Assam. It is the regional divisional headquarters of the North East Frontier Railway. It's situated 52 kilometres away from the state headquarter Guwahati.-Geography:Rangia is located at...
  
  . The 'Red Horn' Division includes 77 Mountain Brigade, and, as of January 2010, 315 Field Regiment (India) of the Regiment of Artillery
  Regiment of Artillery
  The Regiment of Artillery is an operational arm of the Indian Army. Formerly part of Royal Indian Artillery of British Indian Army which itself traces its origins to the formation of Bombay Artillery in 1827...
  
  , based at Udalguri
  Udalguri
  Odalguri , , is a town and a town area committee and the headquarters of Udalguri district in the north-eastern Indian state of Assam. Earlier, Udalgiri was a sub-divisional headquarters in Darrang District...
  
  .

In addition, as of mid 2010, an additional mountain division appears to be forming, reportedly to be attached to this corps, located in Assam

Assam

Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

. It has been reported as being 71 Mountain Division, but the Editor of orbat.com says this is an incorrect report of the designation.

External links

• Globalsecurity.org
  GlobalSecurity.org
  GlobalSecurity.org, launched in 2000, is a public policy organization focusing on the fields of defense, space exploration, intelligence, weapons of mass destruction and homeland security...
  
  , Eastern Command, accessed July 2010